Quote:
Originally Posted by .45cultist
I too say,"Thanks!" Gallipoli showed what "colonials" were and are made of.
|
Yeah, flesh and blood, torn apart by the Turkish machineguns and artillery.
It was a turning point though in the way war was fought. Before then it was all about set piece battles with soldiers in formation. ANZAC troops were soon showing the rest of the world how to adapt to the changed technology and carry out the principles of fire and movement on an individual and small unit scale - what sane person would continue to march forward with fixed bayonets and empty magazines when they could dash, dive, crawl and shoot?
Using these new "common sense" techniques, ANZACs went on to take the most ground and capture the most prisoners of all the western armies (as a percentage of number of troops fielded). As an example, a single section (9 men) of Australians was able to take ground that had held up an entire British Battalion (of course this was lost again soon after the Australians moved on). Can't remember where and when - I'll post details when I find it.